Mail-bag-catcher.



C. ACKELS & B. F. THOMAS.

MAIL BAG cATcHEn. APPLICATIN FILED FEE. 29. i916.

lll QUY Patented Dec. 5, 1916;

2 SHEETS-SHEET l c. ACKEL'S a. B.' F.THY0MAS.

MAILA BAG CATCHER. APPLICATION-FILED FEB. 29. 191e LY I Patented Dec. 5, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

CHARLES ACKELS AND BENJAMIN F. THOMAS, OF CODY, WYOMING.

MAIL-BAG CATCHER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 5, 1916.

AppIication led February 29, 1916. Serial No. 81,234.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that we, CHARLES ACKELS and BENJAMIN F. THOMAS, citizens of the United States, residing at Cody, in the county of Park and State of Wyoming, have invented new and useful Improvements in Mail-Bag Catchers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to mail bag catchers adapted to be used upon a moving mail car for removing mail bags from stands mounted adjacent a railway track and it consists in the novel features hereinafter described and claimed.

An object of the invention is to provide in conjunction with a catcher of the character indicated means for grasping and securely retaining the bag so that it is held in position in the catcher from the time that it is removed from the stand until it is swimg into the car.

With this object in view, the catcher comprises a frame which includes forwardly disposed spaced arms, there being pivotally connected with one of the arms and at the intermediate portion of the frame, a retaining member against which a bag may strike as the bag` enters the catcher and when the bag strikes the said member, the member is swung so that the bag is retained in the catcher. v

ln the accompanying' drawing: Figure 1 is a top plan view of the mail bag catcher. Fig. 2 is a view in side elevation of the catcher lowered to position beside the car door with the mail bag inclosed; Figs. 3 and 4 are fragments, partly in section, of the arm and retaining member; Fig. 5 is a view in perspective of the retaining member; Figs. 6 and 7 are details and Fig. 8 is a view in elevation of one end of the catcher frame.

The mail bag catcher comprises a frame 1 which may be pivotally mounted at the side of a mail car in the usual manner. The frame 1 includes an inner arm 2 and an outer arm 3. These arms are connected together at the intermediate portion of the frame 1. The arms 2 and 4 are spaced from each other at their forward ends. The arm 3 is provided at its rear end and at its opposite side and at its inner edge withnotches 4. The arm 3 is provided at its inner rear end with an arcuate edge 6 and an edge 7 which extends from the forward end of the edge 6 to the forward end of the arm 3. At the point of juncture between the edges 6 and 7 the arm 3 is of the greatest transverse breadth and the opposite sides of the rear portion of the arm 3 from the points of juncture between the edges 6 and 7 converge toward each other toward the rear portion of the arm andthe notches 4 provided at the rear end thereof. The arm 2 is provided at its inner rear portion with an ogee shaped edge 8 and the arm 2 is provided at a point between the ends of the said ogee edge and at its opposite sides with notches 9.

A bag retaining member 10 is pivotally connected with the rear portion of the arm 2 by means of a pivot bolt 11. the said member having in the vicinity of its rear end a lug 12 which is inserted in a slot 13 provided at the inner rear edge of the arm 2. The bag retaining member 10 is provided at one side with an ogee-shaped edge 14 adapted at times to it snugly against the edge 8 of the arm 2. The bag retaining member is provided with another ogee-shaped edge 15 which is located opposite the edge 14 and the edges 14 and 15 may be designated as those edges which lie at the opposite sides of the shank of the bag retaining member 10. The bag retaining member 10 is provided with a portion 16 which at times is adapted to encounter the intermediate part of the Jframe 1 and at other times is disposed at an angle with relation to the intermediate portion of the frame 1. Spring clips 17 are mounted at the opposite sides of the shank portion of the bag retaining member 10 and are adapted to engage in the notches 9 when the shank portion of the bag retaining member 10 is swung into contact with the ogee-shaped edge 8 of the arm 2. When the shank of the bag retaining member 10 is in contact with the inner edge of the arm 2, the portion 16 of the bag retaining member is disposed at an angle with relation to the intermediate portion of the frame 1.

The portion 16 of the bag retaining member is provided at its free end with lugs 18 which are adapted to engage the notches 4 at the rear end of the arm 3. When the portion 16 is disposed at an angle with relation to the intermediate portion of the frame 1, the lugs 18 snugly receive between them the intermediate portion of the inner edge part of the arm 3 and lie in the Vvicinity of the point of juncture between the edges 6 and 7 of the arm 3. 1n view of the fact that the arm 3 at the recesses 4 is less in transverse thickness than at the point of juncture between the edges 6 and 7 when the lugs 18 arrive over the notches 4 they may' fall by gravity into the said notches and consequently, the part 16 of the bag retaining member 10 may beheld by gravity in close proximity to the intermediate portion'of the frame 1. j

When the device' is about. to be used for catching a mail bag, the bag retaining member.10 is swung so thatits shank portion-is in engagement with the ogee-shaped edge 8 of the arm Zand the clips 17 are in engagement with the notches 9. As the catchingdevice approaches the bag which is supported from the stand at theside ofthe track, the bag enters the space between the forward ends of the arms 2 and 3 and when the intermediate portion of the bag strikes the portion 16 of the bar retaining m-ember, the force of impact swings the member 10 whereby the clips 17 areV disengaged from the notches 9 and the portion 16 of the bag retaining member is forced. back into contact with the intermediate portion of the frame 1 and Vone of the lugs 18 enters one of the notches 4 at the rear end of the arm When the bag retaining member is swung in the manneras just indicated, its shank portion is carried toward the arm 3 and the rear part of the ogee-shaped edge 15 receives the intermediate portion of the bag and the `forward, part of the said edge lies in such close proximityto the point of juncture between the edges 6 and 7 of the arm 3 as to vprevent the bag from bouncing in a forward direction and dropping from the catcher.

.'rfter the bag has been caught in the catcher, the frame 1 is swung to a vertical position as'the door opening of the car and thelug 18 is disengaged from one 'of the notches 4 whereby the bag retaining member 10 is'swung and its shank is brought in contactwith the ogee edge 801i the arm 2 and thus vthe shank of the bag retaining member 10 is moved suiiticientlyV away from the inner edgeof the arm Sto permit the bag to be removed from'between the arms Zand 3'. v Y Y Fromthe foregoing description takenV in conjunction with the accompanying draw- *in-g it willbe seen that a mail bag catcher of durable structure is provided and that the bag is securely held in the catcher when it is lodged against the bag retaining member, andthe swinging movement of the bag retaining member breaks the force ot contact between the bag and the catcher and thus when the bag is caught, it is not liable t'o be damaged or torn.

Having described the invention, what is claimed is 1. A mail bag catcher comprising a frame, spaced arms mounted upon the frame, abag retaining member pivotally connected with one arm and having a portion slidably engaging the other arm, spring clips mounted upon the bag retaining member and engageable with that arm to which the bag retaining member is pivoted, to hold the said retaining member in one position, the other arm having a notch and a lug provided upon the bag retaining member and adapted to gravitate into the notch when the bag is caught and retainthe bag in the Catcher.

2. ri mail bag catcher comprising a iframe, spaced arms mounted thereon, one of the said arms having at its inner portion an ogee-shaped edge, the other arm having a curved inner edge, a notch provided in the last mentioned arm at the end of the curved edge thereof, a bag retaining member pivotally connected with the arm which is provided with the ogee-shaped edge and having a shank provided with opposite ogee-shaped edges, one of which is adapted to engage the ogee-shaped edge of the said arm, spring clips mounted upon the shank of the bag retaining member and engageable with one of the arms to hold the bag retaining member in one position, and a lug carried by the bag retaining member and adapted to enter the notch whereby the bag is retained in the catcher.

3. A mail bag catcher comprising a frame, spaced arms mounted upon the frame, one of the said arms provided at its inner portion with an ogee-shaped edge, the other arm lhaving at its inner portion a curved edge, a notch provided at the last mentioned arm at the end of the curved edge thereof, the last mentioned arm being thicker transversely at'the end of the curved edge opposite that end from the said notch, a bag retaining member pivotally connected with the arm which is provided with an ogeeshaped edge, said bag retaining member having a shank portion provided at its 0pposite sides withogee-shaped edges, one of which is adapted to encounter the ogeeshaped edge provided upon the said arm, spring clips carried by the shank of the bag retaining member and engageable with the arm having the ogee-shaped edge to hold the Vbag retaining member in one position,

the said bag retaining member having an In testimony whereof We aiix our signaend portion which is engifgeable With the tures in presence of tvvo Witnesses. intermediate part of the rame when the device receives a, bag, the said portion of the bag retaining member having a 1u adapted to gravitate into the notch when the Witnesses:

bag retaining member is swung to a posi- ERNEST T. EBERT,

tion to hold a bag. OTTO F. KOENIG.

opies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patente, Washington, D. C. 

